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Created to Worship Together

Pr Wei-I

06-12-2020

 

Worship is more than the songs that we sing to the Lord. Worship is about our lifestyle; it is also about our giving to the Lord and the sacrifices that we give unto the Lord as well. Today I’ll be specifically talking about the singing aspect of worshipping together. Due to Covid-19, unfortunately, service is done in our own homes and on our own devices. In this season, God wants to encourage us to see that online worship is not lesser than physical worship. He wants to draw us into a deeper intimacy with Him and He wants to reveal the conditions of our own hearts towards Him and towards worship.

 

Worship starts from the heart.

 

When we first started this online church service, I was manning the chats at the side and was looking for comments. Often times, I couldn’t really engage in worship because I was responding to people.

 

God convicted me one day. I repented before the Lord. I realised that I’ve set certain criteria in order to worship. For me, it would be having a live band in front of me or having myself with the guitar. So, I was unable to worship from the screen for the longest time. From that day onwards, I told myself that I was going to sing out loud when the worship team plays.

 

Isaiah 29:13

New International Version

13 The Lord says:

“These people come near to me with their mouth
    and honour me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me
    is based on merely human rules they have been taught.

 

Our worship ultimately stems from our own hearts. It is not based on the different formats of worship. In the Old Testament, when the Babylonians took the Israelites captive and destroyed the temple, the Israelites’ form of worship was animal sacrifices. In Babylon, they changed their form of worship from animal sacrifices to focus on the studying and teaching of the Torah. Today, what we see and hear is dependent on our devices. When we were back in church, our voices tend to be drowned out by the crowd when we were worshipping together and that gave us the confidence to sing out loud. Right now in our own homes, we might get a bit awkward singing and expressing ourselves in front of our own family members. Even though forms of worship have changed in the way we see and engage in worship, our heart of worship should always remain the same.

 

John 4:21-23

New International Version

21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

 

Jesus is actually telling the Samaritan woman that one day, people would not go to the temple to worship anymore because the temple would actually be destroyed in the future. Jesus is saying that people worship in the Spirit and in truth from their own hearts where ever they are. Worship would never be confined to a place or an environment.

 

Something for us to consider today: Have we relied on the church to worship the Lord and connect with God? Once this routine has changed, do we find ourselves unable to engage in worship before the Lord? Have our hearts gone astray during this pandemic? Have we gone far away from the Lord?

 

God is actually challenging us to gone deeper in intimacy and worship with Him in this season, especially when we are isolated from everybody else.

 

James 4:8a

New International Version

Come near to God and he will come near to you. 

 

Besides making our hearts right before the Lord, there are some practical things that we can do to help us to be more engaged in worship. First and foremost, we can wake up earlier. We can also prepare ourselves through prayer. Another practical thing that we can do is to have breakfast before service. We can also click full screen when we worship. Lastly, sing out loud and hear ourselves sing out the truths of God and declare who God is.

 

Continue to worship even though it is hard. For some, our life schedules are all messed up. It is hard to juggle between work and children. It is hard to set aside time for worship. Some of us might feel lonely and isolated during this period when we are not able to meet with people. Some might even be battling with sickness during this year and have been crying out to the Lord for intervention and for healing to take place. Some have lost loved ones and are going through grief. During such times of difficulty and pain, we find it difficult to engage in worship because the breakthrough that we are hoping for has not been realised yet.

 

Worship is a way that we can declare who God is over our lives.

 

Worship is a way where we can declare God’s character and His nature over our situations.

 

I raise a hallelujah, in the presence of my enemies
I raise a hallelujah, louder than the unbelief
I raise a hallelujah, my weapon is a melody
I raise a hallelujah, heaven comes to fight for me

 

I raise a hallelujah, with everything inside of me
I raise a hallelujah, I will watch the darkness flee
I raise a hallelujah, in the middle of the mystery
I raise a hallelujah, fear you lost your hold on me!

 

I'm gonna sing, in the middle of the storm
Louder and louder, you're gonna hear my praises roar
Up from the ashes, hope will arise
Death is defeated, the King is alive!

 

Worship helps us to place our eyes on the Lord.

 

Worship helps us to see that our King is alive and that we can trust Him and look to Him in the midst of our circumstances.

 

God is here with us in the midst of our suffering.

 

God is here with us in the midst of our loss.

 

No matter our condition or our situation, God wants our worship.

 

You are here, moving in our midst
I worship You
I worship You
You are here, working in this place
You are here, touching every heart
You are here, healing every heart
Healing every heart
You're turning lives around
You are here, and You are mending every heart

Even when I don't see it, You're working
Even when I don't feel it, You're working
You never stop, You never stop working (You're the way maker)

 

Worship is about communion with the Lord.

 

Matthew 18:20

New International Version

20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

 

God is being enthroned in our praises and He is ministering to us and working in our lives.

 

Haggai 2:3-5

New International Version

‘Who of you is left who saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Does it not seem to you like nothing? But now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord. ‘Be strong, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work. For I am with you,’ declares the Lord Almighty. ‘This is what I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear.’

 

For the Israelites, when they came back to the land to rebuild the temple, they felt that this new temple that they had to rebuild would be nothing like the former glory of the old temple. But the Lord declares that even though it might seem like nothing, His Spirit still remains with them.

 

Likewise, even though online worship is nothing like coming to a physical church to worship together with everyone, God is saying, “My Spirit is here with you. Do not fear. I am still here with you.” Even though the place of our worship looks different, the presence of the Lord is still with us.

 

Worship is about communion with each other as well.

 

Colossians 3:16

New International Version

16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

 

As we’re singing together, we’re reminding each other of who God is, His character and His faithfulness.

 

Be encouraged that we are worshipping together as a body of Christ. God is not bound by our locations.

 

Imagine houses throughout the Klang Valley being lit up as we worship together on Sundays. And all churches are having their services online. Imagine neighbourhoods all across the nation being lit up in worship on Sunday mornings. Our corporate worship is bigger than we think as we worship together and declare the praises of God together as a body of Christ.

 

Hebrews 10:24-25

New International Version

24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

 

As we continue to worship the Lord together, let’s allow the Lord to survey our hearts and to renew our hearts with adoration for Him.

 

Continue to choose to worship Him even though we don’t feel like it. As we sing out the truths of God, we are also ministering to our own situation and building our faith in Him.

 

Let’s be reminded that we are not alone in this. As we are having communion with the Lord and with each other, God is not just working in our own individual lives but also building the church as well during this time.

 

Worship can begin right now in our own homes and where ever we are. Online church vs physical church looks different but God remains the same. Our heart of worship should also remain the same.

 

Reflections:

 

1.   Have you found it difficult to engage in online worship recently? Why do you think that’s so? What do you think will help you engage in worship better?

 

2.   Are there lyrics you find difficult to sing about God? What are they, and why do you feel that way?

 

3.   Is there someone you know who has found it difficult to engage with church online or online HFs/CGs? How can you encourage them to not give up meeting up?


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